Reliability and Validity of the Visual, Musculoskeletal, and Balance Complaints Questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology and Vision Science
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Psychometrics and Health Outcomes Measurement

Background:

• Individuals with visual impairments often experience co-occurring musculoskeletal and balance issues.
• Accurate assessment tools are crucial for understanding the impact of visual impairment on overall health.
• The Visual, Musculoskeletal, and Balance Complaints Questionnaire (VMB) was developed to address this need.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability and validity of the 15-item Visual, Musculoskeletal, and Balance Complaints Questionnaire (VMB).
• To assess the VMB's suitability as an outcome measure for individuals with visual impairments using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Rasch analysis.

Main Methods:

• Study 1 involved 1249 individuals from a low vision center, utilizing CFA for factor structure and Rasch analysis for scale properties.
• Study 2 included 52 individuals with visual impairments, assessing convergent validity against clinical measures of vision, pain, and balance.
• The VMB scale was adapted from 10 to 5 points based on Rasch analysis findings.

Main Results:

• Confirmatory factor analysis supported the VMB's a priori three-factor structure with significant item loadings.
• Rasch analysis confirmed good metric properties, including unidimensionality, person separation, and reliability (0.87–0.94) after scale adjustment.
• The VMB demonstrated adequate convergent validity, with significant correlations between its domains and relevant clinical assessments.

Conclusions:

• The adapted VMB is a simple, cost-effective, and rapid tool for screening and evaluating concurrent visual, musculoskeletal, and balance complaints.
• The VMB exhibits strong reliability and validity for use in individuals with visual impairments.
• The questionnaire holds potential for epidemiological research, intervention studies, and clinical applications in low vision rehabilitation.